AHC - German Colonization in North America

The Germans are one of the largest ethnic groups to settle the US. The issue is timing. The French came to Louisiana and Quebec in the 18th century and managed to maintain linguistic/ethnic identity for a long time. The German waves were largely in the 19th century after Manifest Destiny placed the English speaking US coast to coast. Some did keep German schools into the early 20th century, and assimilated with pressures from WWI sentiment. Only with much earlier settlement could the Great Lakes region and Midwest become reflections of Dutch/German Europe.

They not a problem but they are huge so they will impact all colonial and other political affairs ofEurope.

I mean, that's really going to be at the crux of this whole concept. To get a real German presence in the New World that is still noticeably German now would require huge changes in the earlier development of Europe and colonization.
 

Lusitania

Donor
I mean, that's really going to be at the crux of this whole concept. To get a real German presence in the New World that is still noticeably German now would require huge changes in the earlier development of Europe and colonization.

Yes that means that french, English and maybe other countries development and colonization change if we have a German state that uses Bremen as port for exploration and colonization. It would need to be a large stable country say size of Bavaria that is not engaged in constant politics and war with its neighbors as part of HRE.
 
Yes that means that french, English and maybe other countries development and colonization change if we have a German state that uses Bremen as port for exploration and colonization. It would need to be a large stable country say size of Bavaria that is not engaged in constant politics and war with its neighbors as part of HRE.

Any chance of some sort of pan-HRE effort behind colonization?
 

Lusitania

Donor
Any chance of some sort of pan-HRE effort behind colonization?
The issue is that HRE countries were constantly changing alliances and to colonize you need a stable system and HRE wS definitely not that. Plus is HRE German then the best port was Bremen.
 
In my Chaos TL, the northern half of OTL continental US eventually becomes German-speaking, but it's a long process and I had to help a bit, in not too obvious ways.

1. Europe discovers not Central America with the riches of the Aztecs and Maya first, but the north which has good pelts, but not much more. So they only found small colonies, for prestige and the principle.
2. One of these European states is Braunschweig, which founds a colony around (indeed) OTL Philadelphia.
3. Decades later, they expand into the Appalachians. The colony becomes famous for its woodcutters, making a living selling timber to the other European colonies.
4. Because of a different reformation, there are no Catholic/Protestant wars which disturb the development.
5. When the Caribbean sugar islands and the Latin American empires are discovered, attention goes away from the north, so the Germans aren't disturbed.
6. The Dutch meanwhile settled New Jersey. And after a victorious war against Denmark also the western half of upstate NY.
7. Later however, the Danes take back this land, plus OTL New Jersey.
8. The German and Danish colonies are united after the prince of Braunschweig becomes new Danish king.
9. During an English Civil War, New England and its religious dissenters break with the mother country and accept Denmark-Braunschweig as a protector.
10. After the defeat of France, a good part of Louisiana with the coal and iron ore and the midwest goes to Denmark-Braunschweig, so nobody else gets it.

Long story short: The more numerous Germans assimilate the Dutch, Danish, Swedish and Polish minorities; given enough time, even the upper and middle classes of New England are Germanized, and between the old English settlements, new German ones are founded; when the country is centralized in the early 20th century, German finally is enforced as first language taught in schools even in English communities; even in the present of 1993, you can find old people in villages who had English as a native language.
 
In my Chaos TL, the northern half of OTL continental US eventually becomes German-speaking, but it's a long process and I had to help a bit, in not too obvious ways.

1. Europe discovers not Central America with the riches of the Aztecs and Maya first, but the north which has good pelts, but not much more. So they only found small colonies, for prestige and the principle.
2. One of these European states is Braunschweig, which founds a colony around (indeed) OTL Philadelphia.
3. Decades later, they expand into the Appalachians. The colony becomes famous for its woodcutters, making a living selling timber to the other European colonies.
4. Because of a different reformation, there are no Catholic/Protestant wars which disturb the development.
5. When the Caribbean sugar islands and the Latin American empires are discovered, attention goes away from the north, so the Germans aren't disturbed.
6. The Dutch meanwhile settled New Jersey. And after a victorious war against Denmark also the western half of upstate NY.
7. Later however, the Danes take back this land, plus OTL New Jersey.
8. The German and Danish colonies are united after the prince of Braunschweig becomes new Danish king.
9. During an English Civil War, New England and its religious dissenters break with the mother country and accept Denmark-Braunschweig as a protector.
10. After the defeat of France, a good part of Louisiana with the coal and iron ore and the midwest goes to Denmark-Braunschweig, so nobody else gets it.

Long story short: The more numerous Germans assimilate the Dutch, Danish, Swedish and Polish minorities; given enough time, even the upper and middle classes of New England are Germanized, and between the old English settlements, new German ones are founded; when the country is centralized in the early 20th century, German finally is enforced as first language taught in schools even in English communities; even in the present of 1993, you can find old people in villages who had English as a native language.
So the timeline has gone up to 1993, right?
 
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